Union Minister of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution, and New and Renewable Energy, Pralhad Joshi, informed today that ethanol production capacity in India rose to 1,589 crore litres per annum, which is sufficient to meet the country’s domestic ethanol needs. He noted that approximately ₹1.05 lakh crores have been paid, clearing over 94.8% of cane dues for the current sugar season and bringing cane dues to their lowest level. Joshi also mentioned that nearly 99.9% of cane dues from the 2021-22 sugar season have been settled. For the previous sugar season of 2022-23, out of the cane dues of ₹1,14,494 crores, ₹1,14,235 crores have been paid, leaving only ₹259 crores outstanding, thus covering approximately 99.8% of the cane dues.
In June, ethanol blending with petrol reached 15.90%, and cumulative ethanol blending from November 2023 to June 2024 hit 13.0%.
The government aims to achieve 20% ethanol blending by 2025. To meet this target, around 1,016 crore litres of ethanol are needed, with a total requirement of 1,350 crore litres, including other uses. Therefore, an ethanol production capacity of approximately 1,700 crore litres is required by 2025, assuming plants operate at 80% efficiency. The government’s estimate for the 20% blending target considers the growth in petrol-based vehicles, including two-wheelers and passenger vehicles, and projected motor spirit sales.
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